• About Kellogg
  • Programs
  • Faculty & Research
  • Admissions
  • News & Events
  • Support Kellogg
Achal Bassamboo
Achal Bassamboo

MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS & DECISION SCIENCES; OPERATIONS
Associate Professor of Managerial Economics & Decision Sciences

Print Overview
Professor Bassamboo joined the faculty at the Kellogg School of Management in 2005, after completing his Ph.D. in Operations, Information and Technology at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. His research interests lie in the areas of service systems, revenue management and information sharing. His current research involves designing flexible service systems with a focus on capacity planning and effects of parameter uncertainty. He is also studying credibility (or lack thereof) of information provided by a service provider or a retailer to its customers.


Areas of Expertise
Capacity Management
Queuing Systems
Service Management
Print Vita
Education
PhD, 2005, Operations, Information, and Techonology, Stanford University
MS, 2004, Statistics, Stanford University
BT, 2000, Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute Of Technology

Academic Positions
Assistant Professor of Managerial Economics and Decision Sciences, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2006-present
Donald P. Jacobs Scholar in Managerial Economics and Decision Sciences, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2005-2006

 
Print Research
Research Interests
Applied probability and stochastic models; stochastic systems: performance analysis and optimal control; revenue management; operations management; rare event simulation

Articles
Bassamboo, Achal, Sunil Kumar and Ramandeep S. Randhawa. Forthcoming. Dynamics of New Product Introduction in Closed Rental Systems..
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal, Sandeep Juneja and Assaf Zeevi. 2008. Portfolio Credit Risk with Extremal Dependence. Operations Research. 56(3): 593-606.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal, Sandeep Juneja and Assaf Zeevi. 2007. On the Efficiency Loss of State-Independent Importance Sampling in the Presence of Heavy-Tails. Operations Research Letters. 35(2): 251-260.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal, J. Michael Harrison and Assaf Zeevi. 2006. Design and Control of a Large Call Center: Asymptotic Analysis of an LP-Based Method. Operations Research. 54(3): 419-435.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal, Sandeep Juneja and Assaf Zeevi. 2006. Performance of importance sampling simulation in the presence of heavy tails. Operations Research Letters. 34: 521-531.
Bassamboo, Achal, J. Michael Harrison and Assaf Zeevi. 2005. Dynamic routing and admission control in high volume service systems: Asymptotic analysis via multi-scale fluid limits.. Queueing Systems. 51(3-4): 249-285.
AbstractLink
Bassamboo, Achal, J. Michael Harrison and Assaf Zeevi. 2005. Dynamic Routing and Admission Control in High-Volume Service Systems: Asymptotic analysis via multi-scale fluid limits. Queuing Systems. 51(3-4): 249-285.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal and Sandeep Juneja. 2001. Efficient Winner Determination Techniques in a single item multiple unit auction. Proceedings of First IFIP Conference on E-commerce, E-business and E-government.: 417-430.
Bassamboo, Achal. 1998. Gripper Design for cylindrical objects. Proceeding of the 18th All India Manufacturing Technology Design and Research Conference, IIT Kharagpur.
Working Papers
Bassamboo, Achal and Assaf Zeevi. Forthcoming. On a Data-Driven Method for Staffing Large Call Centers. Operations Research. Forthcoming
Abstract
Allon, Gad, Achal Bassamboo and Itai Gurvich. We Will be Right with You: Managing Customers with Vague Promises.
AbstractLink
Bassamboo, Achal, Ramandeep S. Randhawa and Jan A. Van Mieghem. 2009. Optimal Flexibility Configurations in Newsvendor Networks: Going Beyond Chaining and Pairing.
Bassamboo, Achal, Ramandeep S. Randhawa and Jan A. Van Mieghem. 2009. A Little Flexibility is All You Need: Asymptotic Optimality of Tailored Chaining and Pairing in Queuing Systems.
Allon, Gad and Achal Bassamboo. The Impact of Delaying the Delay Announcement.
AbstractLink
Allon, Gad, Achal Bassamboo and Eren Cil. Large-scale Service Marketplaces: The Role of the Moderating Firm.
AbstractLink
Allon, Gad and Achal Bassamboo. 2008. Buying from the Babbling Newsvendor: Availability Information and Cheap Talk.
AbstractLink
Lim, Michael, Achal Bassamboo, Sunil Chopra and Mark S. Daskin. 2008. Flexibility and Fragility in Supply Chain Network Design.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal, J. Michael Harrison and Assaf Zeevi. 2008. Pointwise Stationary Fluid Models for Stochastic Processing Networks.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal and Ramandeep S. Randhawa. 2007. Optimal Control in a Netflix-like Closed Rental System.
AbstractLink
Allon, Gad and Achal Bassamboo. 2007. The Role of Services: Pricing, Product Line, and Durability.
Abstract
Bassamboo, Achal and Sachin Jain. 1999. A Heuristic for Job shop Scheduling under a two class case.
Book Chapters
Allon, Gad and Achal Bassamboo. 2009. "Cheap Talk Applications in Service and Retail." In Consumer-Driven Demand and Operations Management Models, edited by Serguel Netessine and Christopher Tang, New York: Springer.

 
Print Teaching
Teaching Interests
Operations management
Full-Time / Part-Time MBA
Operations Management (OPNS-430-0)

This course counts toward the following majors:Operations.

Operations management is the management of business processes--that is, the management of the recurring activities of a firm. This course aims to familiarize students with the problems and issues confronting operations managers, and to provide the language, concepts, insights and tools to deal with these issues to gain competitive advantage through operations. We examine how different business strategies require different business processes and how different operational capabilities allow and support different strategies to gain competitive advantage. A process view of operations is used to analyze different key operational dimensions such as capacity management, cycle time management, supply chain and logistics management, and quality management. Finally, we connect to recent developments such as lean or world-class manufacturing, just-in-time operations, time-based competition and business re-engineering. Prerequisite: DECS-433 or DECS-436.

Operations Management (Turbo) (OPNS-438-B)
This accelerated course serves as an introduction to Operations Management. The course approaches the discipline from the perspective of the general manager, rather than from that of the operations specialist. The coverage is very selective: Students concentrate on a small list of powerful themes that have emerged recently as the central building blocks of world-class operations. The course also presents a sample of operations management tools and techniques that have proved extremely useful through the years. The topics discussed are equally relevant in the manufacturing and service sectors. Prerequisite: One-Year-student status.

Doctoral
Revenue Optimization (OPNS-481-0)

This course counts toward the following majors: Operations.

In this course, we study demand-management decisions, and the methodology and systems required for making them. This course covers the mathematical models that underlie contemporary revenue management (RM) practices and also discusses recent advances in the area.